Periodic Reporting for period 1 - BIO4EEB (BIO insulation materials for Enhancing the Energy performance of Buildings.)
Reporting period: 2023-01-01 to 2024-06-30
The BIO4EEB project is driven by the urgent need to enhance energy efficiency in buildings, aligning with EU climate goals. Buildings account for 40% of energy consumption and 36% of CO2 emissions in the EU, yet renovation rates have been insufficient to meet policy objectives like the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive and the Energy Efficiency Directive. The European Green Deal and Renovation Wave emphasize deep renovations, benefiting both energy savings and SMEs in construction.
A key industry challenge is the reduction of embodied energy in materials and emissions from traditional construction. The BIO4EEB project addresses this by developing bio-based insulation materials that meet industry standards. The project aims to:
• Improve building performance at material, component, and whole-building levels.
• Reduce energy demand, heating/cooling needs, and carbon footprint.
• Support EU sustainability directives (e.g. ESG).
• Expand the market share of bio-based insulation in residential buildings.
• Leverage an extended value chain to promote bio-based materials.
• Ensure a 7-year payback period for its solutions.
• Demonstrate lightweight, prefab bio-based solutions for renovations across diverse European regions.
By prioritizing circularity and sustainability, BIO4EEB contributes to long-term emissions reductions and improved energy efficiency in the construction sector.
The integration of social sciences and humanities is essential to ensure the successful adoption of bio-based insulation materials and energy-efficient renovations. BIO4EEB entails human behaviour, market acceptance, policy impacts, and socio-economic factors in early work packages (WP2) which is crucial for effective implementation. SSH helps address residents' concerns, regulatory barriers, and cultural differences in building practices, ensuring that innovations are not only technically feasible but also socially accepted, economically viable, and policy compliant.
A key industry challenge is the reduction of embodied energy in materials and emissions from traditional construction. The BIO4EEB project addresses this by developing bio-based insulation materials that meet industry standards. The project aims to:
• Improve building performance at material, component, and whole-building levels.
• Reduce energy demand, heating/cooling needs, and carbon footprint.
• Support EU sustainability directives (e.g. ESG).
• Expand the market share of bio-based insulation in residential buildings.
• Leverage an extended value chain to promote bio-based materials.
• Ensure a 7-year payback period for its solutions.
• Demonstrate lightweight, prefab bio-based solutions for renovations across diverse European regions.
By prioritizing circularity and sustainability, BIO4EEB contributes to long-term emissions reductions and improved energy efficiency in the construction sector.
The integration of social sciences and humanities is essential to ensure the successful adoption of bio-based insulation materials and energy-efficient renovations. BIO4EEB entails human behaviour, market acceptance, policy impacts, and socio-economic factors in early work packages (WP2) which is crucial for effective implementation. SSH helps address residents' concerns, regulatory barriers, and cultural differences in building practices, ensuring that innovations are not only technically feasible but also socially accepted, economically viable, and policy compliant.
In its first 18 months, BIO4EEB successfully completed all planned tasks, focusing on developing bio-based renovation materials, defining KPIs, and preparing for demonstrations. Key achievements include:
• Technical Set-Up: Mapped certification needs, created user profiles, defined 11 KPIs, and assessed bio-based insulation materials.
• Technical Developments: Advanced Posidonia panels, flame-retardant coatings, PLA foams, sprayable insulation, and window frames. Launched development of the BIO4EEB digital platform.
• Demonstration Prep: Assigned demo roles, formed a working group, and built a business model framework to guide sustainable renovation strategies.
These efforts lay the groundwork for large-scale demonstrations and market uptake.
• Technical Set-Up: Mapped certification needs, created user profiles, defined 11 KPIs, and assessed bio-based insulation materials.
• Technical Developments: Advanced Posidonia panels, flame-retardant coatings, PLA foams, sprayable insulation, and window frames. Launched development of the BIO4EEB digital platform.
• Demonstration Prep: Assigned demo roles, formed a working group, and built a business model framework to guide sustainable renovation strategies.
These efforts lay the groundwork for large-scale demonstrations and market uptake.
In the first 18 months, BIO4EEB achieved key technical innovations beyond the state of the art:
• Posidonia Panels: Developed lightweight, thermally efficient bio-based insulation with improved durability and scalability.
• PECs: Created sustainable, solvent-free flame-retardant coatings using mechanochemical synthesis, with proven stability and quality.
• PLA Foams: Scaled up a new process to produce flame-retardant additives and optimized polyols for bio-based polyurethane foams.
• Bio-Foam & Windows: Produced high-performing sprayable insulation foams and window frames from bio-based polyurethanes, with ongoing improvements.
• Prefab Facades: Planned innovative, low-carbon bio-based facade systems for demonstration in residential buildings in Germany, Czech Republic, and Lithuanias.
• Digital Platform: Core components developed; integration of data, simulations, and decision-making tools is in progress, with a virtual materials marketplace planned.
• Posidonia Panels: Developed lightweight, thermally efficient bio-based insulation with improved durability and scalability.
• PECs: Created sustainable, solvent-free flame-retardant coatings using mechanochemical synthesis, with proven stability and quality.
• PLA Foams: Scaled up a new process to produce flame-retardant additives and optimized polyols for bio-based polyurethane foams.
• Bio-Foam & Windows: Produced high-performing sprayable insulation foams and window frames from bio-based polyurethanes, with ongoing improvements.
• Prefab Facades: Planned innovative, low-carbon bio-based facade systems for demonstration in residential buildings in Germany, Czech Republic, and Lithuanias.
• Digital Platform: Core components developed; integration of data, simulations, and decision-making tools is in progress, with a virtual materials marketplace planned.